Canada's first 'free' grocery store set to open
Due to food insecurity, non-profit organisations in Canada offer families food.
Canada is opening its first 'free' grocery store for food-insecure people. What does this mean?
"Food insecurity is when people can't access the food they need to live their entire lives. There are many causes of food insecurity." (Feeding America)
Since the pandemic, many people in Canada have had to turn to Food Banks for their food supply. In the community of Regina, one in eight families and one in four children do not have food.
This motivated the Regina Food Bank to open its first 'free' grocery store to those they assist.
Usually, the Food Bank or Hub community members are given a box filled with food items to keep them going. However, this method was standardised across the platform and only sometimes helps families with different food preferences to singles.
This is why Regina Food Bank Vice President David Froh said: "None of us fit in a box, but that's what we give our clients today. When you give choices, you give not just dignity, but actually, we figure we can feed about 25 per cent more people."
Clients, so to speak, will be able to visit this new free grocery store with a credit of $200 (R2.700), and they will be able to shop for food items for their families.
Watch the below news report about the store from YouTube.
Would something like this work in South Africa?
"One-third of all food produced in South Africa is dumped in landfills, while more than 11 million people are hungry. FoodBank SA collects edible surplus food from manufacturers and retailers and redistributes this food to hundreds of verified NPOs that feed thousands of hungry people daily. FoodBank SA is also a proud member of the Global FoodBanking Network (GFN)." (Renewal Institute)
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Image Courtesy of YouTube